KathyKlatch

 Sequoia National Park Sequoia NP, like Descanso Gardens in LA, was the perfect place for Dave. As an arborist, he appreciated much about the park that the average person might not. And I will not use the word HUGE in describing these trees, as it is hugely overused. 1. Giant sequoia trees grow in a very specific habitat. The Sequoia trees are MONSTERS! ENORMOUS! But they only grow between about 5,000 - 7,000 ft. elevation, on the western rise of the Sierra Nevada mountains. As we hiked to see the General Sherman Tree, the largest tree by volume in the world, we attained an elevation breaking point. If we looked above us on the trail there were no sequoia trees, but if we looked down the hillside, there were sequoia trees everywhere. I found it fascinating that we were entering such a vertically narrow natural environment. Seeing our first sequoia, we had to get a picture. Looking up! The Twins. (The trees, not Dave and me.) The woman who took this picture took a vertical panorama...

Amusing Latino Restaurant Names   As we traversed our wonderfully diverse nation I was struck by the number of Mexican and Latino restaurants available. Although my favorite is a Cuban cuisine gem in Ocala named Latinos y Mas, the ones seen on our trip had some amusing names. Here are a few of my favs: Los Arcos (the arches). Not to be confused with the Golden Arches we love so much. Toros Cantina and Grill. And Grill? Does this place serve half-Latino food? "I'd like a burrito, please." "Would you like fries with that?" Takila Modern Mexican. Must be modern spelling. Pancho Villa Tex Mex. Wait a minute! Poncho Villa lost his cause in the Mexican Revolution and was assassinated! If I eat here I'm not sitting with my back to the door. The Lazy Donkey. Who does that refer to? The cook? The waitress? Either way, not a good "sign." (Checking out some reviews of The Lazy Donkey at Grub Hub, it seems it's the consistency that's lazy.) Oso Pasea. ...

 El Segundo: a new favorite place El Segundo is a sweet little town nestled around and in between a Chevron refinery, Hyperion wastewater treatment plant, LAX, and Mattel headquarters. However, Northrop Grumman, Boeing Satellite Development Center, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, LA Air Force Base, and the Space Force's Space and Missile System Center give the area the nickname "Aerospace Capital of the World." These companies make noise one way or the other in the Defense Department scheme of things, but we discovered the largest noisemaker to be the never-ending zoom of jets coming and going from LAX. But more on that later... I really fell for this little town. Narrow streets, mom-and-pop local establishments, friendly people, lots of hills, and cute houses with blooming flowers created a quaint small town feel. But the best part was Coen, Courtney, and Kyle. Did I mention Coen? Papa burping Coen. He was successful. After the burping comes the napping. Adventure awaits not ...

 Snuggle time! I thought this day would never come. After four weeks on the road, four incredible National Parks, several amazing State Parks, one Army Corps of Engineers campground, and even a few private KOA-type "resorts," plus LOTS of miles and a new tire, we finally made it to our campsite near LA. We are camped right on the beach, with The Strand behind our camper. The Strand is the wide sidewalk for biking, running, inline skating, etc. that follows the ocean for several miles. You've probably seen it on shows like NCIS Los Angeles. A quick trudge through the sand and we're ready for a nice walk with Trooper! Oh, yeah, snuggle time. Sorry for that rabbit trail.  Since Courtney and Kyle have two cats, Trooper could not hang out at their house. Oh, they have a new baby, too. Did I mention that? So T is being entertained at Grateful Dogs  Doggy Daycare. We dropped him off before driving over to see Coen. He did very well his first day. He enjoyed the other dogs, b...

 Death Valley National Park Westward Ho! to Death Valley National Park for a drive-through view of the hottest, driest, lowest place in North America. I had 2 goals: See Manly Lake and the enjoy viewing a wildflower bloom. No, it's not a mirage. It's a lake in Death Valley! Manly Lake only forms when specific rainfall conditions are met. Rainfall? In a desert? In Death Valley? Yes! In fact, the lake at Badwater Basin, the lowest point in the park at -282 ft. elevation, was about 1 foot deep this spring, with kayakers having a blast!  The 3 of us on the salt flat shore of Manly Lake.   I had to get my feet wet! Hmm... does that make me a Touron? This year's wildflower bloom was not a "superbloom" as some experts predicted. But that's OK. To see millions of Desert Gold flowers was enough for me. Wildflower bloom at Death Valley NP As we pressed on through the remainder of the park, one of the camper tires blew out. Thank goodness our previous experience prepared...

 Rocks, Rocks, and more Rocks As we left the Grand Canyon behind, we headed north toward Las Vegas and the Valley of Fire. We were still in (very) rural desert areas and saw some funny signs on buildings and along the road: One mom-and-pop grocery store accepts "Cash, Credit, and Pelts."  There was a perpetual yard sale, gauging from the (very) faded advertisement on a telephone pole.  I can't forget "Tropical Parkway" - a road in the midst of the desert scrub and rocks.    The road followed a wide, low valley, as shown in the image above. Dave's comment, "And I thought Florida was flat." However, in spite of the desolate, rocky, no-trees scrub, it was diversely beautiful. On one side of the valley were endless creosote bushes populating the close hills, with green-brown mountains rising up behind, miles away. Yucca, sage grass and sand covered the valley floor. Gray rocky mountains climbed up the other side of the valley, while distant snow capped...